I have a 1977 pro street monza that is backhalfed already.It has a 4 point roll bar in it now.For the frame connectors I was gona use 1 5/8'' .125 wall thickness. I was gonna run it along the pinch weld and weld it in place there.Do you think 1 5/8'' diameter is to big or should I go with 1 1/2'' od. Plus should I add more bars to the roll bar and make it a 6 or 8 point one? It's just a street car that is straught and painted black.and I want to keep it that way. The motor is 355cu in with maybe 400hp max. Any thoughts would help me out.Thanks Dan

I used 1 3/4 " tube for my frame connectors welded to the pinch weld. There is a pretty good "channel" to run it in. I would run no bigger than 1 5/8" if i had to do it again so it would tuck up a little higher out of sight. I think you can see what I mean if you look through my project journal. For a street car, i would leave the roll bar the way it is. If you ever plan to race it, I would atleast upgrade to an 8 point cage.

Well I'de like to take the car to the track to see what it will do there time wise.The tires on the back are mickey thompson sportsman which aren't sticky at all.They are 29x18.50x15.Do you think I should go with the 1 5/8'' od or 1 1/2' od .125 mild steel tubing? Plus if I do take it to the track will I need to add more bars to the exsiting roll bar?Thanks

mr blue. they wont bother you at the track about the bar until you start getting down towards the 10s, then you will need at least a 6 pointer,probably an 8 pointer, and it has to have certain specs built into it. check the NHRA rules book for details art

OR, your other option is to buy a hoop kit from chassis engineering and install the top halo and 2 windshield down bars, add a swing out door bar and not only will you be killing 2 birds with 1 stone its easier to put in. Youll be legal at the track cause you always want to go faster and faster...lol

I also ran a sill bar in mine to tie the middle together from your main hoop to the front windshield down bar. This will be alot stronger overall to the car then just a peice of round tubing stitched to the pichweld on the rockerpanel. You wont need any kind of connector if you want to call it that, the cage becomes the frame of the uni body car.

I bought another 74 vega wagon and just ordered another subframe connector set from those guys in san antonio.Not bad id say. Paid $135, includes the ship/freight too. Should get em in on tomorrow, I ordered early yesterday morning.heres the link if anyone interestedhttp://www.southsanantoniofab.com/catal ... 550193.htm

rocko any chance you could post some closeup pics of the bars before the install and then maybe a few shots after they are in place. would really like to see what they look like and how the look installed. thanks art

I just received my South San Antonio frame connectors the other day. My first impression is, they are not nearly as beefy as i was expecting. I am hoping to get them welded in pretty soon. I took a couple pics of the bars themselves, but of course since i'm posting, i can't find them. I'll post some as soon as i can. I will also measure the metal thickness for you guys. Regardless of them not being as beefy as i was expecting, they have got to help with twist i would think. We'll see.

I have not seen the brand bars you have, but in my yrs of chassis mutilation ( I thought it was great,at the time)the strength comes from tying everything together, so think of the frame connectors as a "part" of the total package,when you weld them in, they provide strength and support where there was none before, the welds every 12 in makes it all one piece, adding cage, or hoop and down legs, will further strengthen the whole chassis.

I had a race shop back in the 80s weld in some frame connectors on my 73 hatchback and the location of those were from just ahead of the lower rear control arm,,,,,, up to the pad where they locked the vegas in the rail cars for shipment,,,,the connectors were 2 by 2 square but they did hang down a bit,,,I have just made a set for my 1975 astre wagon that are 1 by 2 square so they will not hang down much,,and they are not so high that I have to cut the floor.I also think if you ran a bit of a rail up to the actual frame in the front would be a huge strength improvement,,,which is what I will probably do at the same time,,,got a friend with hoist and shop.

I bought some from Overkill Racing 3 years ago or so that I like. http://www.overkillracecars.com/H-body_Parts.htmlSays on the site he's not selling them but I called him anyway and he sent me a set.Pretty easy to copy when you see the picture if there not available. Got then on a street SBC 350 hpNever drove it without them installed so I can't tell you how strong they are. I can jack it up in front of the rear wheel till the front wheel raises and the door still opens normally. Car does feel stiff (good) when driving.